Charles Barkley and Michael Jordan have feuded for a decade. Perhaps it’s not so much a feud as what’s called in geopolitics a “cold war.” Nobody fires any shots — but the relationship between two parties is coldly defined by animosity, distrust, and lack of communication.
In Barkley’s and Jordan’s case, the situation is a lesson in how fragile friendship can be — because Jordan, Barkley and fellow superstar Tiger Woods used to pal around as a high-wattage sports celebrity trio, seemingly BFFs with an emphasis on the forever.
But if you haven’t heard, MJ is not a big fan of criticism — and when Barkley stepped over the line and criticized the GOAT’s ownership of the NBA’s Charlotte franchise, Jordan put a stop the their relationship like Chuck was Toni Kukoc at the Olympics.
That was ten years ago, and it’s still a subject people talk about because of the level of Jordan’s fame and the general likability of Barkley. Forgive and forget? Michael Jordan? This is a guy who mentioned Byron Russell in his Hall of Fame induction speech, only to dig the defender for failing to stop him on that famous jumper against Utah.
[Note: A Bulls teammate was once asked to describe Jordan in one word — he replied “predator.” Predators don’t turn relax.]
Among the people still talking about the Jordan-Barkley breakup is the great raconteur and 4x NBA Champion John Salley, the 6’11” Brooklyn native.
Salley was asked about the decade-long cold war between Barkley and Jordan recently on a podcast. He responded swiftly saying Barkley “feels bad about that because it was his fault.”
Barkley told Salley that after Jordan initially called him out for his comments, he thought it would blow over. But both men are “stubborn,” Barkley concedes.
Salley added more insight into Barkley’s particular perception of the problem, reporting that when he interviewed Barkley last November, Barkley said that he “made a mistake and shouldn’t have said that about my friend.”
Salley pulled out some old wisdom to explain Jordan’s position, saying that “when somebody shows you who they are, believe them the first time.” Salley believes Barkley showed with his critical comments that he wasn’t a friend to Jordan — and Jordan has evidently believed that ever since.
